ielts usa practice general training reading test

Write your answers on the answer sheet.. SECTION 1 Questions 1–14 Read the text below and answer Questions 1–7... Write your answers in boxes 1-7 on your answer sheet.. Questions 8–14 Re

IELTS USA

Sample General Training Reading Test

Practice Test

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INSTRUCTIONS TO CANDIDATES

Do not open this question paper until you are told to do so

Write your name and candidate number in the spaces at the top of this page

Read the instructions for each part of the paper carefully

Answer all the questions

Write your answers on the answer sheet Use a pencil

You must complete the answer sheet within the time limit

At the end of the test, hand in both this question paper and your answer sheet

INFORMATION FOR CANDIDATES

There are 40 questions on this question paper

Each question carries one mark

1 Hour

A CURE FOR THE COMMON COLD?

The average person comes down with three colds a year, each lasting for about nine days There is still

no cure but the following advice may help

Take time off work, because your body will fight off the cold virus better if it is well rested However, if you have to work, avoid close contact with your co-workers as the virus is contagious Wash your hands frequently or use an alcohol-based disinfectant gel Non-sedating allergy medications, which you can buy from a chemist, can decrease drowsiness and also alleviate the problems of a runny nose, watery eyes and blocked sinuses

As soon as you feel a cold coming on, boost your fluid intake Water or juice is ideal but hot herbal teas with lemon will help thin mucus and expel it from the body A warm gargle with salt water will relieve a scratchy throat by reducing inflammation and clearing mucus and irritants It also flushes out bacteria and viruses so it can be used as a preventative measure as well

The warm moisture generated by a hot shower or bath will soothe and clear nasal passages Inhaling steam over a bowl of hot water relieves congested sinuses, too For a tickly cough, the latest research suggests that honey, either straight from the jar or dissolved in a hot drink, works as well if not better than costly lozenges and sprays

A good diet is essential for a quick recovery, so start the day with a healthy breakfast including vitamin

C in the form of fresh fruit or berries For lunch, chicken soup is good, but be sure to add chunks of lean chicken meat, for protein helps build immune cells Not only is this the perfect comfort food but it has been proven to be medicinally beneficial For dinner, a spicy curry makes a good decongestant and some ingredients (ginger, garlic, chilli) are recognised as being anti-viral and anti-bacterial

A little light exercise is beneficial, as this will enhance your emotional wellbeing, but don’t attempt any-thing too strenuous Finally, to recharge your body and regain your strength, you need a full eight hours’ sleep

SECTION 1

Questions 1–14

Read the text below and answer Questions 1–7.

Page 4

Complete the summary below

Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the text for each answer

Write your answers in boxes 1-7 on your answer sheet

People usually get three colds every year When sick, it is good to stay away from work because you need rest and you could spread the illness to 1 ……… Reduce 2 ……… and

cold symptoms by using medicines that you can buy from a pharmacy

Drink a lot and gargle with salt water to help clear your throat Gargling with salt water is a good

3 ……… to keep you safe from future illness, too Steam helps clear the nose and

4 ………., instead of expensive medicine, is good for a cough.

Take lots of vitamin C Chicken soup is healthy and it is ideal 5 ………., as well as having

curative properties In the evening, a meal of hot curry will clear the airways This also has

6 ……… that can neutralise harmful bacteria and viruses Some kind of 7 ………

is a good idea to improve your mood and sleep will help you to get better

CAR THEFT

Car theft is a constant problem, but if you own a newer model of car, there is less likelihood of it being stolen Newer models incorporate security systems that help prevent theft However, thieves often steal car keys to access newer vehicles so it is a good policy to know where your keys are at all times Never leave them in your car, even if it is parked in your garage at home You make life easy for the burglar

if you leave keys in a receptacle just inside the door or hanging from a hook Think of a less obvious place, hidden from view Once a thief has access to your keys, everything you own is at risk, including your personal safety

While older cars are a potential target, there are some simple precautions you should take Definitely, lock your car before you leave it, even for the shortest time, even in the driveway of your house Think of installing an alarm or a steering lock or consider a mechanical immobilizer that fits across the steering wheel This is a relatively inexpensive item but it is a good deterrent for thieves They generally go for the easiest and fastest option

Obviously, it is in your own interest to make your vehicle as difficult to steal as possible – not only to avoid stress and inconvenience, but also because your insurance premiums will soar if you make a claim If you are unfortunate enough to have your vehicle stolen, phone the police immediately You will need to provide information relating to your vehicle including make, model, year, colour, registra-tion number and VIN (vehicle identificaregistra-tion number) You need all of this when you file a stolen vehicle report Police will also log any personal items that were in the vehicle If these items include identifying documents such as a registration certificate, this will make the illegal resale of the vehicle simpler for the thieves, so keep these documents in a separate place

Next, contact your insurance company If your wallet was in the car and it contained credit cards, you will need to notify your bank If your house keys were in the car, call a locksmith and have your locks changed, and if you are still making payments on the car, you will need to inform the finance company Both your insurance company and the finance company will ask you for copies of the police report so it

is best to obtain one in the first instance

Questions 8–14

Read the text and answer questions 8–14.

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Complete the notes below

Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the text for each answer

Write your answers in boxes 8–14 on your answer sheet

Car theft

• modern cars are more difficult to steal because of their 8 ……….

• If they have your keys, burglars could steal your car or even threaten your 9 ………

• older models are easier to steal, so get an alarm or steering lock or use an immobilizer (cheap but effective 10 ……….)

• the loss of your car is stressful and also makes your 11 ……… more expensive

• if your car is taken:

- call the police

- supply all identifying information for vehicle – fill out a 12 ……….

- NB: the 13 ……… of the vehicle will be easier for the thieves if you leave official

pa-pers inside

- call the insurance company, bank (if necessary), and the 14 ……… if you owe money

on the car

HOW TO WRITE A JOB TRANSFER REQUEST

If you want to transfer to a division of the company in another city, you should write a job transfer appli-cation letter to your Departmental Head or Human Resources expressing your reasons

Employees may seek a transfer:

• to undertake professional development (e.g learn new skills or a new line of business)

• to confront new challenges (e.g you have mastered all the duties related to your current position which has now become routine and you feel the need for a change)

• to break away from unrelenting tension or conflict within a team

• to cope with a change in life’s circumstances (e.g family illness, marriage, divorce, birth of a child)

• to recover from illness or manage the aging process (e.g physical pain, fatigue) – in this instance, you may want to request reduced working hours or lighter duties

• to change the nature of your job (e.g from on-the-road to a non-travelling role)

• to repatriate (i.e return to country of origin)

A job transfer request made for personal reasons should state those reasons clearly and succinctly However, you should also highlight your achievements, strengths and abilities, draw attention to your familiarity with the organization’s values and practices, and demonstrate how the company will benefit from the transfer If appropriate, include a transition plan, which includes training a new person for your current job

The job transfer request letter should be written in formal business format with a polite and respectful tone The employee should keep copies of all communications concerning the transfer request

Note that, if you want to apply for an existing, advertised vacancy within the company, you should fill in the application document, write a cover letter, and treat it as you would an external application

SECTION 2

Questions 15-27

Read the text and answer questions 15-20.

Page 8

Complete the notes below

Complete the summary using the list of words, A–L, below

Write the correct letter, A–L, in boxes 15–20 on your answer sheet

How to request a transfer

To get a job with a different 15 ……… of the firm, write a formal letter stating your reasons

These may include professional development; adjusting to a different family 16 ……… ;

leaving a stressful work environment; ill health or old age; desire for a different type of

17 ……… ; or repatriation.

Apart from personal reasons, you should focus on your 18 ……… : what advantages there are

for the firm, and your knowledge and understanding of company

19 ……… You may need to attach a transition plan.

If the job you would like has been advertised, you need to complete the appropriate

20 ………

REDUNDANCY WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW

Getting laid off can be distressing and demoralizing for the employee Two features differentiate re-dundancy from other grounds for termination Firstly, the position must be justifiably superfluous to the employer’s requirements and, secondly, the employee must not be at fault Redundancy cannot

be used as a means of dispensing with a poorly performing employee, or one who has been guilty of misconduct in the workplace

Whether a position is truly redundant is a matter of business judgment for the employer Whereas minimal modifications to a job role do not amount to grounds for redundancy, a worker who has an obsolete skill set because of the introduction of new technology, for example, can be made redundant Sometimes the reason for redundancy is obvious to employees, such as the relocation of the business

to another city or province, closing down, or selling the business; but sometimes it is less obvious, such as a takeover by another firm A company can also make redundancies in order to operate more efficiently and cost effectively, if there are financial issues leading to downsizing or if it is no longer us-ing a certain department, for example In some situations, a company may decide to lay off part of its workforce because it can no longer sustain some in-house services and it wants to outsource certain business functions

The employer must consult ‘in good faith’ (sincerely and honestly) with the affected workers before making the ultimate decision Reasons for the reorganisation must be presented and workers must have an opportunity to have their say The employer must take into account any feedback that employ-ees provide Where possible, the employer should weigh up the alternatives, such as transfer within the company or a reduction in hours The final decision, however, rests with the employer The notice

peri-od for redundancy will usually be stipulated in the original employment contract If not, then ‘reasonable notice’ is required and this will depend on the circumstances, such as seniority and length of service

In some situations, employees may wish to challenge their redundancy in court, and this must be done within 90 days of the decision The employer must show that the redundancy was genuinely decided

SECTION 2

Questions 21-27

Read the text below and answer Questions 21–27.

Page 10

Choose FOUR letters, A–H

Write the correct letters in boxes 21–24 on your answer sheet

Which FOUR of the following are genuine reasons for redundancy?

A the company moves to a new place

B the company wants to hire a younger workforce

C the company has recently taken on other people

D the company no longer requires as many employees

E the company wants to get rid of badly behaved employees

F the employer contracts another firm to perform the work

G the employer has no need of underperforming employees

H the employer’s need for a particular type of work has ceased

Questions 25–27

Complete the sentences below

Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the text for each answer

Write your answers in boxes 25–27 on your answer sheet

25 The company has to consult with workers before making the final redundancy decision; it must provide reasons and consider the workers’

26 A period of of redundancy is needed, where this is not stated in the contract

27 If employees contest their redundancy, employers must provide for the

redundancy decision

A BOOK REVIEW – DOG WILL HAVE HIS DAY BY FRED

VARGAS (TRANSLATED BY SIAN REYNOLDS)

This is another crime thriller from the prize-winning novelist Fred Vargas Despite the misleading first name and Spanish surname, the author is actually a French woman – Frédérique Audoin-Rouzeau She adopted her nom de plume from the Ava Gardner character, the Spanish dancer Maria Vargas, in

the 1954 film The Barefoot Contessa Although a writer of crime fiction, Frederique Audoin-Rouzeau is

primarily a medieval historian and archaeologist

Her detective books are immensely popular: over 10 million copies have been sold worldwide and they have been translated into 45 languages She is a little mystified by her success – after all, it is just a hobby – and finds it quite amusing As an archaeologist specialising in epidemiology, she produced the definitive study on the transmission of the bubonic plague – a book that she says “after seven years of intensive work trying to find the real vector of the plague” sold only a thousand copies It is even more paradoxical to learn that she wrote each of her novels in three weeks flat, during her annual summer holidays Even when she took a break from archaeology to work full-time on her fiction, the first draft was still finished within the same time frame She uses the ensuing months to polish and tidy the prose

Perhaps by virtue of Vargas’ archaeological background, Dog Will Have His Day starts with a bone It

turns out to be the top joint of a woman’s big toe, found by chance in Paris by Louis Kehlweiler, a former special investigator for the Ministry of Justice He presents his find to the local police, who decline to do anything about it However, Louis, convinced that a murder has taken place, decides to focus on finding the body to which the toe belongs

Most of Vargas’ characters are eccentrics in some way and Louis is no exception He carries a toad named Bufo around in his pocket and consults it on matters of importance, although Louis says: “You have to keep it simple with Bufo, just basic ideas … He can’t cope with anything else Sometimes I try a bit harder, a bit of philosophy even, to improve his mind He was much more stupid when I first got him.” Louis recruits the assistance of Marc Vandoosler, one of the ‘evangelists’ of a previous novel

The Three Evangelists The evangelists, actually unemployed historians, share a rundown house and

Marc is the medieval researcher among them Later, another of the evangelists, Mathias, the

hunt-SECTION 3

Questions 28–40

Read the text below and answer Questions 28–40.